The present invention relates to a method for producing a knitted fabric with a circular knitting machine with cylinder and dial, particularly for producing footlets or the like.
Footlets for protecting the foot inside shoes when, particularly during summer, one prefers not to wear socks are already known.
One type of footlet that is currently commercially available is produced starting from a piece of knitted fabric from which the parts that compose the footlet are cut and are then mutually assembled by sewing.
The operations for cutting and sewing the parts that compose the footlet significantly affect the production costs of this type of footlet. However, with the knitted fabrics currently commercially available for this application it is difficult to reduce the number of parts required without excessively penalizing the fit of the footlet, since said fabrics have a limited elasticity. Moreover, the stitched seams can cause discomfort to the user.
Another type of footlet is produced individually directly on circular machines with a process similar to the one used for making socks. In order to contain production costs, these footlets are generally produced in a single size, by using exclusively synthetic yarns that are highly extendible but are not always appreciated by the user, who generally prefers a natural material in contact with his skin. As an alternative, one resorts to additional sewing operations, but it becomes necessary to provide a plurality of sizes, inevitably increasing production costs.
The aim of the present invention is to solve the above noted problems, by providing a method that allows to produce a knitted fabric that is particularly adapted to be used to produce footlets or the like with lower production costs than required by current methods for producing these items.
Within this aim, an object of the invention is to provide a knitted fabric that allows to produce footlets that are particularly comfortable for the user.
Another object of the invention is to provide a knitted fabric that, although having a substantially inextensible natural yarn on one of its sides, has an elastic extendibility that allows to produce comfortable footlets without having to resort to the assembly of shaped parts and with a reduced number of sizes in production.
This aim and these and other objects that will become better apparent hereinafter are achieved by a method for producing a knitted fabric with a circular knitting machine with cylinder and dial, particularly for producing footlets or the like, comprising the steps of:
producing a first row of knitting by using all the needles of the cylinder, forming drop stitches and keeping the needles of the dial inactive;
producing a second row of knitting by using every other needle of the dial and every other needle of the cylinder, forming tuck stitches;
producing a third row of knitting by using the same needles of the dial used to form the second row of knitting, forming drop stitches and keeping inactive the other needles of the cylinder and of the dial;
producing a fourth row of knitting by using all the needles of the cylinder, forming drop stitches and keeping the needles of the dial inactive;
producing a fifth row of knitting by using the needles of the cylinder and of the dial that have not been used in forming said second row of knitting, forming tuck stitches and keeping inactive the other needles of the cylinder and of the dial;
producing a sixth row of knitting by using the same needles of the dial used to form the fifth row of knitting, forming drop stitches and keeping inactive the other needles of the dial and the needles of the cylinder;
said production steps being repeated for the successive rows of knitting, using elastically extendible yarns to form at least part of the rows of knitting.